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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rule — a law
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wound — an injury
  7. rule — government
  8. bore — to drill
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. kid — to tease
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — to crush
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. kid — child
  20. wound — an injury
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. bore — to tire

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com